Magna Sequentia I is a unique sequencing of dance movements drawn from Bach’s keyboard works featuring pieces from the French Suites and the Partitas. Whereas...

Magna Sequentia I is a unique sequencing of dance movements drawn from Bach’s keyboard works featuring pieces from the French Suites and the Partitas. Whereas Bach’s suites typically comprise six to eight movements, Sonia Rubinsky has selected 19, compiled with a tonal logic that still keeps the structure of a suite. She has chosen several examples of each of the dance forms used by Bach so one can appreciate the dazzling variety of both style and mood. Enhanced by her historically informed performance, Magna Sequentia I offers fresh insights into Bach performance on a modern grand piano. Sonia Rubinsky was awarded Best Recording of the Year in the Classical Category of the 2009 Latin Grammy Awards for the eighth volume of the complete piano works of Heitor Villa-Lobos, recorded for Naxos. She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance from The Juilliard School, New York.

REVIEW:

Nimble figures keep the mercurial passages both rhythmically tight and crisp, and she shapes each dance with affection, keeping two bouncy Gigues and a final Capriccio to bring a mood of exhilaration to the close of the work. The acoustic is relatively dry and in keeping with mood of the music.

– David's Review Corner (David Denton)